Some things you can do to get obsogenes out of your food

[nadinbrzezinski]

and yes, it takes work... and I admit MONEY and some know how.

Well we have seen leading research that suggests one of the multi-facets to obesity is what our lovely food industry puts in our food, as well as our chemical industry puts in our containers. Yes, there is the PRC crowd, so for the moment lets assume that those doing research into hormones have a clue and have found one of the many causes that may lead to silly shit like increased insulin resistance and low thyroid function.

So there are several things I have started doing.

1.- I am now baking my own bread. Still learning... it is an art. Why? You find breads without the usual crap like HFCS... yes, they do exist, but still they are few and far between and less every year. So found some solid recipes and taking the time to do that. Mind you, I think that baking them is not that time consuming... but getting it right in a small oven is a little more challenging than I expected. Still, we now enjoy fresh baked breads.

2.- We, well I cook every day, and I use fresh ingredients, and organic when possible. I know a lot of people do not have time for this.

3.- I also have moved on to going out a lot less than we used to... and we are selective of where we go out, for the most part.

Now I realize that what I am doing is very difficult for many people, There are many reasons and I will list them.

a.- For the working poor, having to work two and even three jobs a day doing this is like asking for the moon. Why we should have HEALTHIER choices available for people who cannot do this, AT PRICES THEY CAN AFFORD.

b.- Americans are far removed from a culture where people know what to do with food. I am serious, now we know that many of the working poor and lower middle class have no clue what to do with basic things like oh carrots and potatoes, as in the raw kind ok. So we may need to have outreach programs to teach the coming generations what mothers used to teach daughters, how to cook.

c.- Mostly I am able to do this since I have the time and the resources... I want this available to all. If indeed BPA is part of the crisis and we know food is engineered to be addictive... then the only way some of this crap will change is by as many of us NOT buying. But to do this people need information and available resources.

Now to the PRC I wish you would just shut up and LISTEN to some of the working poor around these parts that will tell you the following, There is no Whole Foods in the inner city, or for that matter a grocery store. You want to get a fresh anything, you need to take public transportation away from the inner city. Also the working poor do not have the time to do this, or the knowledge, and it is NOT their fault. It is the first time in human history that the thin pretty people are wealthy and the working poor, shall we say surviving poor are obese. That alone should offer a clue but it seems every one of these posts is received with derision by the PRC.

Anyway I am doing what I can to protect my husband, myself and yes, the birds from much of the crap I know is in our food supply... and why I am taking the time to do some things that I know take time. I am not going to judge others for not doing this, but if I am asked how... yes I am willing to tell somebody how to clean a carrot, yes some folks don't know what to do with carrots, or prepare a potato for the stew... or use cheaper cuts of meat for food to be prepared at home. Every little step you can take you do your body a favor...

Oh and the corporations and sadly our government are not on our side... so stop thinking that.

[BrklynLiberal]

1. Great post. Thanks.

[stevedeshazer]

2. Good post, but what is PRC and HCFS?

[nadinbrzezinski]

4. PRC, Personal responsibility Crowd

HFCS High fructose corn syrup

[stevedeshazer]

8. Thanks.

[nadinbrzezinski]

11. You welcome I will be surprised if they don't show up

sooner or later

[csziggy]

3. Everywhere that inner city gardens are possible, they invigorate the neighborhoods

But most cities and towns have no place to plant gardens. Some have proposed creating multistory "farms" to grow food where the people are - not just roof top gardens, but buildings totally dedicated to growing food. Those are pie in the sky futuristic ideas - maybe someday they can help.

I like your idea of helping people learn to cook from scratch - so many do not know how to cook unless you take it from a box, bag or can. Even fewer know how to plan healthy menus and how to economically plan to use food over a week to stretch their resources. Or how to spend a day cooking and freeze prepared meals (if they have access to a reliable freezer) so they can have quick meals on days when there is not time to cook.

Some of the information is available from the government through the county extension service offices. But those have not moved into the modern era to shift their services to city people and still aim at farm communities.

[nadinbrzezinski]

5. Detroit is actually doing that

while many programs shut down the extension program is growing, and there are now farmers markets. People are using empty lots where houses once stood to grow food. They are now teaching people what to do with those carrots, and tomatoes, and other fresh stuff many of them, not at any fault of their own, have never seen.

Quick (thanks to NPR) how many supermarkets are in the City Limits of Detroit?

If you said zero, you got the right number. And we are having a similar problem in the inner cities nation wide.

[csziggy]

12. Yes, I know the problem is bad in the cities

I actually live on a farm, though we do not grow our own food. Maybe next year I will put in a garden.

Our medium size town has farmer's markets and food cooperatives that carry locally grown products, so we are in better shape than most places. But I am socially isolated so I do not know how many local people even know how to cook from basic ingredients. The people I personally know have the knowledge but not the time.

[nadinbrzezinski]

13. The time is not that difficult to find with a little effort

let me elaborate, if you know how to make a stew, making a slow cooker stew takes ten minutes.

Sadly and i recognize this, some folks don't even have those ten minutes.

We need some serious changes in how our society functions. the end of peak oil will do it I think.

[csziggy]

14. For some the planning takes more time than they have

I don't have kids, no longer have a business, and no job right now. So I have time. I'm very, very slow at cutting stuff up, though, so it takes me time to get a stew ready. But even so, I can spend an afternoon and have meals for a month in the freezer with the right planning. Before my surgery in June, I cooked up a bunch of stuff but over estimated what we'd need - I am still pulling stews and other dishes out of the freezer!

This year I signed up for a community supported agriculture program and get organically grown vegetables from a local farmer. Originally I was trading horse manure for vegetables, but not now. Every other week I get a bag of vegetables, sometimes things I would not usually buy - lots and lots of all kinds of greens, fennel, squash, cucumbers, and more.

Rather than give away the ones we had not been using before, I've been making it a challenge to learn to cook and appreciate these vegetables. Some I have failed with - okra is a total failure. I am getting really, really tired of greens. I've had to refuse the hot peppers since I react if I handle them. But most of the vegetables we've been enjoying.

If I can physically handle it and fight off the deer, I'd like to plant my preferred vegetables next year. More herbs, green beans, tomatoes, bell peppers, squash, melons, etc. Then there would be less waste and we'd have what we want. I'm going to work on the planning over the winter!

[nadinbrzezinski]

15. I wish I had access to land

For me I mix the bread and then wait for it to rise by doing my work... so that works...

but I get it, also our society expects people to consume... and that includes supermarket food

[csziggy]

26. We've cut back on what we buy - especially meats

But we cannot grow salad greens here except in the fall and late winter, so we get those and milk, mostly from the supermarket.

My shoulder is healed enough I plan to make bread this week for the first time in months. I wanted to last week but had no time to even get the ingredients out. I'm glad your bread making is going well.

[kestrel91316]

16. Start with Mel Bartholomew's Square Foot Gardening. The book

will show you how to start out with a garden as small as 2' x 2'. Easy, peasy. Don't make it a big deal when you start out.

Of course, once you are hooked then you will expand madly. And venture into home canning, and maybe open a roadside vegetable stand, and.........well, these things have a way of becoming VERY important in one's life, lol.

[csziggy]

25. I did all of that 30 years ago - raised lots of vegetables, canned them

Had a good time. But had to quit when our business grew and I did not have time to tend the garden. While I do not have the Square Foot Gardening book, I used the same principles. My best gardening book was written by a talented gardener that lived just a half mile down the road and was written for our area and my local micro-climate.

Now the problem is that I am not as physically able as I was then. Bad back, bad knees, bad ankles, bad shoulders and so on. If I can get my planting beds around the house prepared, I might try to put in vegetables instead of flowers, or mix them like I used to. But we have voracious deer - they ate all my caladiums and pansies last year and much on the firespikes right next to the house. Not to mention the bunny that visits the front porch and the squirrels that are everywhere!

If I wanted to get ambitious, I could plant acres of vegetables, hire people to manage them and really make a business out of it. Many of the small vegetable farmers around here are certified organic but people will buy local stuff that is not certified for nearly as much money. We've got thirty acres that are not in woods - the horses use most of it, but there is still room for several acres of crops.

I'm just getting too tired to get ambitious these days, though.

[Luminous Animal]

24. You cannot simultaneously live on a farm and not grow food.

The definition of a farm is growing food. Or perhaps you live on rural land that is fallow (still not a farm) or land that is "farmed" by agri-business.

[DainBramaged]

6. obsogenes ???

TWO brain tumors, kidney stones, a heart attack, partially blind, I take 8 medications a day to stay alive, and now I have to worry about obsogenes?

I don't think so. EVERY day I wake up is a Mitzvah, and when God says it's time, OH WELL.


obsogenes, the new worry for progressives. As if we don't have enough to worry about.

[nadinbrzezinski]

7. Leading research is showing that

some substances in plastics for example, interfere with how your endocrine system works. By the way, they may be behind some of your issues already.

Oh and being scientifically informed is not an obsession but part of what citizens need to know in a modern society.

[DainBramaged]

9. At 58 going on 80, I try to enjoy what I eat now

I think that no matter what I try to avoid, the clock has been ticking for a while and avoiding obscenegenes isn't going to make a difference, but thank you for your concern, I appreciate it.

[nadinbrzezinski]

10. Well I am also concerned about my nephews

who are just growing up... and the crap that you and me will leave behind.

So thanks for your concern.

Gee you got a serious answer... about how science moves



Oh and you have no idea, freshly baked bread is divine.

[kestrel91316]

18. Endocrine disrupters, a la Theo Colborn's excellent book Our Stolen Future.

[nadinbrzezinski]

19. Exactly... and I suspect that even vets are seeing this

I wonder if the parrots aren't obese because of their incredible high metabolic rates... to be honest.

[kestrel91316]

20. A too-high metabolic rate would cause weight LOSS.

But, I do believe that endocrine disrupters MUST have something to do with at least some of the morbidly obese cats I see who are totally resistant to all efforts toward weight loss.

[nadinbrzezinski]

21. Well the three birds have a naturally fast metabolism

like oh birds.

But they have mostly maintained the same weight over the decades... with a variance of a gram or two. Except of course when tuky was deadly ill... then he got really thin (for a tiel)

But I have wondered about that, since they eat MY food (and one drinks milk, she likes the stuff... at least it is organic)

They attack the home baked bread though. They LOVED IT... especially the rye\wheat peasant bread.

[kestrel91316]

17. Obesogens

[The Straight Story]

22. Reminds me of the (some would say Evil) Amish

Who have for a long time lived outside (in many ways) the mainstream and made their own bread, cultivated their own crops, etc.


Maybe they were ahead of the curve in some ways

[nadinbrzezinski]

23. In some ways absolutely

many of our chemicals are about to byte us in the ass.

Others are based on oil, peak oil end of green revolution. A few billion may starve.

[cali]

27. In Vermont, we've been doing everything you suggest for

close to 30 years. It's made a difference. True, there's no inner city here, but we aren't immune to poverty.

[Jester Messiah]

28. Corporations and government are complicit in this

The FDA has long been a pawn of the corporations. As far back as I can remember, their advice has been to load way up on the carbs, which of course makes the midwest grain merchants very happy indeed.

Also, maybe it's just me, but... anyone ever reflect on how the worst possible food you can eat is also the most readily available in all aspects? If all the transport you've got is your feet, and you've got a dollar to your name, you can still acquire a McDonald's hamburger pretty much whenever you want. A steady diet of Mickey D's is a sure ticket to an avalanche of medical problems in short order, which makes certain people very wealthy...

Dunno, maybe I'm just rambling, but I see a connection there. I bet there are a lot of health industry stockholders who also own stock in fast food chains. Synergy, I think they call it.

[nadinbrzezinski]

39. NOt only that, it is addictive

book to read.

The End of Overeating, by Kessler

[Trillo]

29. You hit one of my buttons with the

"getting it right in a small oven is a little more challenging than I expected"

It's probably not the oven provided the oven works as designed, but the lack of a temperature controlled proofing chamber, that also can double as a bulk-fermentation chamber, that leads to inconsistent results. Also, care in measurement of ingredients is necessary, as well as care in measurement of time (time at particular temperatures).

If you can get all three of those things right, temperature, time, and measure, then the only thing you need to learn is to get past the wrong instructions out there.

It's actually quite amazing to me that in K-12 school we weren't all taught how to bake artisan quality bread, as closely related "civilization" is to cultivated wheat. Bread making could even be used to teach some kinds of chemistry and math.

[SoCalDem]

33. The trick is to learn to love "different" bread

a home baker will never "wonder-ize" their own bread..

French bread is super-easy to make, and tastes better than any store-bought french bread..

I've never use a bread machine..just a huge breadboard & my two hands..

[Trillo]

35. Most store-bought french bread isn't great, but it usually is consistent.

Some of us home bakers want our bread the same every time, no matter what bread "style" is decided upon.

If you like your bread different every time, then that's great! I wonder what it will be like this time! It's your bread. Make it anyway you like.

Most home ovens aren't manufactured to bake even a short baguette well, though "value added" ovens are available for those with enough money for them. There are workarounds, but none that really duplicate a commercial bakery oven. That's why some folks make a brick oven in their backyard. It's even hard to find a true French bread flour that won't make the crust too tough and chewy instead of crisp with tender crumb.

[nadinbrzezinski]

40. Since I have it, I have used the bread hooks on the mixer

[Vidar]

30. K&R

[Kalyke]

31. Arnold's makes a fantastic bread with no HFCS.

I can't bake bread. I've tried and tried and just can't. I can whip up any other dish imaginable, but not bread, so I go with Arnold's.

Also, my son helps me in the kitchen and I cook every night. Our boys need to know how to cook as well as the girls since the chances both sexes will grow up and have to work. Chore-sharing makes a more successful marriage/partnership.

We eat out, maybe, twice a month. My food tastes better anyway.

Best rule of thumb: shop on the outskirts of the store. If you'll notice, all your fresh veg and fruit, bread, meats, dairy and juices are wrapped around the "outer lap" of most grocery stores. ONLY venture into the inner aisles for specific needs (noodles, rice, spices, dog food, etc.). It keeps you from buying as much so that you can afford to eat well on a working poor salary.

[BabbaTam]

32. HFCS awareness

I noticed that not long ago, Orowheat took the HFCS out of their whole wheat bread. It looks like consumer awareness was hurting their sales! Yea! A sign of hope. Maybe the 'hundredth monkey syndrome' is happening.

[nadinbrzezinski]

42. When I bought the ingredients for bread making

it was funny. The store manager asked. I told her why.

She mentioned that she is selling more bread making ingredients than they used to and that is one reason.

[renate]

34. have you tried the recipes in "Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day"?

I can't cook bread either but OMG the bread I've made from those recipes....

Your library should have a copy if you just want to give it a try without investing in the book.

I got the idea of baking bread in a Dutch oven from their website--it came out great:
http://www.artisanbreadinfive.com /

There are lots of no-knead bread videos on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=13Ah9ES2yTU&feature=fvw

Give it a try--if you like homemade bread but could never get it to work before, you'll be thrilled.

[nadinbrzezinski]

43. That's the exact book I am using

and after two or three false starts we have good bread.

I had to increase the baking time... due to the oven. But oh my, it is great and the birds (and husband) like it.

[Ohio Joe]

36. I do these things but for a completely different reason

The food just tastes better. Honestly, I don't even know what obsogenes are.

[Trillo]

37. obesogen

http://endo.endojournals.org/cgi/content/full/147/6/s50
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obesogen

This one is probably easiest to read and understand:
http://www.alternet.org/environment/143036/what_if_bein...

I read somewhere, perhaps one of those links above, that some of these food and environmental contaminants can't be fixed by the downstream user. For example (hypothetical), if someone upstream the distribution chain stored the food in a particular type of plastic, nothing you do will remove the obsogen from the food.

[deaniac21]

38. I grow lots of corn. I went to this place in Mulberry, Arkansas

http://www.coppermoonshinestills.com /

and now I make my own whiskey and distill my own cognac from my wine collection. 99.9 percent copper, very healthy and organic! Great for the circulatory system!

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

41. But that would require people watch what the eat.

And if they watched what they ate, they'd just cut out fat and sugar.